Fallen
by MissHaunted-MoonLight
Summary: Stolen from his friends mere minutes after receiving his own body, Yami returns months later on the brink of death. With his spirit broken and his captor always lurking, the gang must free his mind from the depths of depression before it's too late. AU
1. The Prologue

**Fallen****  
by  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

**Title: **Fallen

**Fandom: **_Yu-Gi-Oh!_

**Rating: **R

**Summary:** Stolen from his friends mere minutes after receiving his own body, Yami returns months later on the brink of death. With his spirit broken and his captor always lurking, the gang must free his mind from the depths of depression before it's too late. AU

**Disclaimer: **I don't own _Yu-Gi-Oh!_ but the Pharaoh owns me … I _do_ own Macros, though, but you can have him if you want. He's creepy … All recognisable characters belong to Kazuki Takahashi, so send the thank-you letters to him.

**Warnings: **Dark! Torture, so mentions of blood, abuse, suffering … yeah, you get the picture. Read at your own peril.

**Author's Notes: **This is my first YGO fic, so any and all comments are appreciated. Set after Dawn of the Duel, where Yami has his own body but doesn't leave for the Afterlife, hence the 'AU'ness. Yugi possesses the Egyptian God Cards.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_"We might as well be strangers in another town__  
We might as well be living in another time  
__We might as well be strangers,  
For all I know of you, now."_

_- Keane, 'We Might as Well Be Strangers'_

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**Prologue**

An ear-splitting, agonising cry ripped through the sleepy silence like a gun-shot.

With mortified shrieks, a family of birds took flight in terror, soaring off into the night sky without a backwards glance as it echoed ominously around the secluded clearing. Even the hisses and crackles of a dying fire were drowned out by its intensity, and the mocking laughter of the creature standing tall, caped in blackness as it raised a blood-soaked claw to the writhing being before it, was momentarily smothered.

One long, heart-wrenching note pierced the air as said blood-soaked claw tore through damaged flesh, before it fell victim to the manic chuckles and sounds of scampering wild-life as small animals scurried away in search of shelter. His voice finally ripped away from him, Yami became eerily silent, the gentle chinking of rusted chains echoing around his pounding head, sounding its knelling call as he shuddered once, and was still.

"Had enough yet, Pharaoh?"

Yami couldn't suppress a tiny whimper of pain and his head inclined once in assent, silently pleading for it to stop.

Yet even amidst the agony, he was able to tell himself that it wasn't going to. Curse his stupid rationality. It seemed it existed to accomplish nothing but to depress him further in his darkest hour.

Which was fast beginning to become his every waking second.

Sauntering over to the fire and plucking up a glowing stone, the creature cradled it as though it were its flesh and blood, feeling the searing heat through the thick, leather gloves encasing its hands protectively, its claws poking out through the tips and glinting menacingly in the dim, earthly light of the clearing.

But the Pharaoh had no such protection.

Practically skipping back to Yami's side, the cloaked creature flashed him a manic grin, hands clasped over the red-hot stone behind its back as it bounced up and down on the balls of its feet.

"All you gotta do is tell me what I wanna know, Pharaoh," it said gleefully, eyes dancing with malice. It contemplated the trembling form of the once King of Egypt and licked its lips in delight, tracing the path of a solitary bead of blood with eager eyes as it snaked a tentative trail down Yami's exposed neck. "I already know I gots the wrong guy, so just tell me where I can find the runt and you're free to go."

Yami bit his lip and shook his head, regretting the motion a second later when the world lurched horribly, the blackness at the edges of his mind suddenly seeming irresistibly inviting.

With a mock-sigh, the creature clicked its tongue in disapproval, the harsh, clipped sound ringing in Yami's ears as he mentally willed himself to give himself up, to drift away into the darkness before the pain could start again.

But he wasn't quick enough.

The stone made scorching contact with the ashen skin of his collarbone and he screamed despairingly, no longer able to fathom what was happening.

There was nothing but heat and pain.

And a resonating, gut-twisting laugh of delight over-riding his cries.

Just when he thought he was to be forever lost to it, the pain diminished slightly as the creature pulled away, the heat lingering a moment longer, no doubt radiating from his own neck, chasing away the biting chill of the early-morning air.

"I _will_ get what I want," the creature said happily, Yami only just managing to focus on its drawling words as the world fogged around him. "It's simply a matter of patience. And after being trapped in the Shadow Realm for nye on 5'000 years, you can bet I've got a _Hell_ of a lot of patience."

Yami shuddered violently, then with a great effort of will, he shook his head again.

But the creature didn't like that.

Leaning in, it hissed malevolently, its forked tongue darting over parted lips as it raised a threatening claw.

"I know all about the ancient scriptures, Pharaoh," it whispered confidently. Barely listening, Yami found himself thinking about how right Yugi had been – evil psychopath murdering wannabe-world-dominators sure _did_ like the sounds of their own voices. But wait … his captor was speaking again … what was he saying? He could barely distinguish between the words being spoken to him. Every syllable seemed to drag into the next forming one never-ending and utterly pointless word of little importance to Yami in his current predicament. He couldn't say he was all that interested in what the Beast's true intentions were. But as the searing heat slowly began to diminish and Yami's eyes dragged themselves once again into focus, he found the rest of the ramble left him with a great deal to think upon and fret over: "… About the power I'll obtain from possessing the 3 Egyptian God Cards along with the Millennium Puzzle. And I also know that I've got to win them from their previous owner … but you see, that's where the problem poses. I can't _find _said previous owner. So where is he, Pharaoh? Where's your Hikari, hmm?"

Yami managed a half-smile for the first time in weeks.

'_You're a genius, Aibou._'

Willing his voice box to procure sound, though admittedly unable to remember exactly how he was supposed to do it, Yami looked up at last, meeting his captor's gaze with a blazing, defiant glare of his own.

"If you h-haven't found him yet," he rasped, the firelight reflected twice over in his pain-racked, crimson orbs, "I'm h-hardly going to t-tell you now, Macros."

The creature scowled, dark eyes dancing with anger and frustration as the claw he'd raised came slashing down again. The world spinning, Yami jammed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth as immense pain shot like wild-fire up his right arm, another deep and bloody gash adding to the thousand and one others that maimed his body.

"Wrong answer," Macros spat savagely, pulling back and turning away. Suppressing a cry of rage, he pulled a filthy cloth from the folds of his black cloak and stomped to the other side of the clearing, wiping his claws clean and scowling in annoyance. "Guess we'll just have to try again tomorrow night, won't we?"

Then without so much as a backwards glance, Macros vanished into the undergrowth, the rustles of bushes and snapping of fallen twigs successfully disguising Yami's agonised whimpers before fading out of existence.

Silence fell like a smothering veil over the entire clearing, and only then did Yami let one single, solitary tear create its own falling path from his dulled orb, mingling with the blood from a gash on his cheek before plummeting to the crimson-stained grass beneath his broken body.

'_I knew you'd keep yourself safe, Yugi,_' he though dismally, falling limp in his bindings and welcoming the darkness at last, '_but I just don't know how much more of this I can take._'

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_**To Be Continued …**_

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**Thanks for reading! More up soon!  
Blessed Be!**

**Hugs,  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**


	2. Everything's Relative

**Fallen  
by  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

**Disclaimer: **See the Prologue for legal ramblings. You'll only severely depress me if you make me admit to not owning _Yu-Gi-Oh! _a second time.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_"We might as well be strangers in another town  
We might as well be living in another time  
We might as well be strangers,__  
For all I know of you, now."_

_- Keane, 'We Might as Well Be Strangers'_

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**Chapter 1  
Everything's Relative**

Yugi Mutou shivered distractedly and struggled to focus on the swirling curls of steam rising like mist from the mug in his hands. Toying with the rim, gliding a finger absently across it in an endless, thoughtless motion, he tried to blot out the worried voices echoing towards him from the shop's entrance.

"Sorry, Téa, but he won't be going to school today. If you can just tell them he's ill, or something … I dunno what you kids do these days to get outa doin' whatever it is you don't wanna do, but if you could help, that'd be great. I'd call in myself but they're probably startin' to get suspicious enough as it is, what with him being off so often lately."

His Grandfather fell silent, the scratching of the broom in his hands swiftly muted to be replaced by a soft creak as weight was applied to its handle. Yugi could almost imagine the old man leaning against it for support, regarding his two friends with a shrewdly calculating expression as he fixed them with that beady, all-knowing stare of his.

He heard Téa's response as clearly as if she were stood right next to him, and consequently jumped slightly as her anxious tones penetrated his exhausted mind.

"Alright," she said softly, turning away from the Game Shop with a worried glance at the curtained rooms above, unsure of where Yugi was but certain he was in there somewhere. "Just tell him … tell him we'll be 'round to see him later."

Visibly relaxing, Yugi slumped in his seat at the perfectly scrubbed wooden table and let out the breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding in, running an anxious hand over his face in an attempt to dispel the growing fatigue.

"Yeah," he vaguely heard Joey's richly-accented voice add with conviction as his friends prepared to leave, "we gotta talk about this an' soon. I dunno 'bout _you_ guys, but I'm really startin' to miss the Pharaoh, an' our relationship with him is _nothin_' compared to that between him an' Yugi. So God knows how he's copin'. We jus' wan' him to know we're all 'ere for 'im."

Yugi half-smiled at hearing that.

His friends really were something.

And maybe they were right. Perhaps it really _was_ time to start talking, if only to begin searching for some semblance of an understanding as to what had transpired all those weeks ago. Even now, Yugi didn't have a clue how everything had spiralled so far out of control in such a small space of time. It seemed to him that whatever Gods were watching them from up high on their lofty perches were hell-bent on making their lives as complicated and wearisome as possible.

And now, as far as he was concerned, having to skip classes on a regular basis simply because he had no energy left to make it to school meant things had gone _way_ over the edge.

Suddenly deciding his half-empty mug of coffee didn't seem all that appetising anymore, Yugi shoved the cup away forcefully, feeling a few splashes of the dark liquid slide through his splayed fingers as he laid them flat against the table-top. His friends' retreating footsteps echoed painfully around his head, only to be replaced seconds later by the tinkling of the shop bell and a disinterested clattering, no doubt from Solomon Motou's pottering about out the front.

Eyes unfocussed and limbs heavy, Yugi sighed heavily, trying to ignore the senseless shivers working their tentative way up his spine, and dropped his head down onto his arms in defeat, relishing in the darkness beneath his closed eyelids. Unfortunately for him, though, such an action did very little to stop the world from spinning. The darkness itself was moving, swirling and twining around him despite the fact it all looked exactly the same …

"Yugi? What are you doing down here? You should be in bed."

Wincing as the words echoed ominously around his head, Yugi forced his stinging eyes open and struggled to focus on the stooped, grey-haired person standing motionless in the kitchen doorway.

"I know," he admitted softly, voice slightly hoarse as though he hadn't used his vocal chords in a while. Shaking his head a fraction in a vain attempt to dispel the fog enshrouding it, he dropped his gaze to his half-crossed arms and was dismayed to see them trembling. "But I wanted to make sure my friends were okay. I mean … well, it's hard on them, too. And they're having to put themselves out so much for me, what with handling school, and all."

Solomon couldn't suppress a small smile as waves of pride coursed through his veins like wildfire. He considered his Grandson through lidded eyes, the warmth of his gaze offset by what had by now culminated into months' worth of unbridled concern.

Even now … Yugi was still putting his friends before himself.

"Well, as I'm sure you heard for yourself, Joey and Téa are doing just fine. In fact, they're more worried about _you_ than anything. And they'll be able to handle today, at least, so don't you worry about that."

Yugi shrugged half-heartedly.

"I know, it's just I feel like I'm becoming a burden," he confessed, clenching his fists hard enough to leave angry red marks where his nails had pierced the soft flesh of his palms. "They're having to make up excuses for me on what's fast becoming a day-to-day basis, and it won't be long before someone comes looking for me, be it the school or … someone else …"

'_Phew!_' he thought, heart racing a little faster then normal beneath his ribcage. '_Nearly gave it away, then. But I can't let Grandpa know the truth. It's not fair on him…_'

"Yugi, I know something's going on."

Jumping, Yugi straightened up in his chair and dropped his arms from the table again, absent-mindedly cupping the Millennium Puzzle in his palms and running a nervous thumb over the Eye of Horus in the centre.

"What do you mean?" he asked anxiously, biting his lip and trying to avoid his Grandfather's piercing gaze.

'_If I don't look at him, I'll be fine. Just don't look directly at Grandpa and he can't force the truth out of you!_'

"You're hiding," the old man said, quite calmly, Yugi decided. He spared Solomon a shifty glance, peering at him through blood-shot eyes as he tightened his grip on the Millennium Puzzle, looking up just in time to see his Grandfather attempting to burn a hole right through his soul with that penetrating gaze Yugi knew all too well.

"Care to talk about it?" Solomon asked, not unkindly, sinking into the chair opposite his Grandson and downing the remainders of Yugi's make-shift breakfast.

Busted, Yugi had half a mind to deny the accusation completely, but he simply didn't have the willpower or the energy to attempt to argue with the one person who knew him almost as well as he thought he knew himself. And there wasn't exactly any chance he'd have won a mental battle in the first place, anyway. So why bother?

"It's nothing, Gramps. Really," he said at last, avoiding Solomon's questioning gaze as best he could, shrinking into his seat and silently struggling to still his quaking hands.

But Solomon wasn't biting.

"You're hiding," he repeated firmly, taking Yugi's resentful submission as fact before turning away and gazing at the wall. "I don't know why, and I don't know who from, but I know you're trying to avoid _somebody_. And I do wish you'd tell me who it is you so dearly wish to refrain from bumping in to."

Yugi sighed again and shook his head, shooting Solomon a sympathetic but firm half-smile.

"Sorry, Grandpa," he said softly, forcing himself to his feet and reaching for the mug again, "I'd tell you if I could but I can't. You're right, though," he added as he shuffled over to the sink and set about rinsing the cup out, "I _am _hiding from someone. But I can't tell you any more than that. To be honest with you, I don't exactly _know _much more than that, myself. It's … complicated."

Solomon considered the youth through apathetic eyes, taking in Yugi's slumped shoulders and bounce-less locks. Hair that usually stood spiked and healthy was now hanging limp and uncared for about the boy's shoulders, and Solomon could have sworn that while Yugi had always been slim, he'd _never_ been _this_ thin …

"It's got something to do with the Pharaoh, hasn't it?" he wagered at last, leaning his elbows on the tabletop and resting his chin on his upturned palms as he considered Yugi sadly.

As if in answer to his question, the mug in his Grandson's hands was promptly dropped with a gasp, leaving it to smash loudly against the linoleum floor, shattered pieces of porcelain flying tornado style across the kitchen.

"I'll take that as a 'yes'," he murmured softly, dropping his hands and sighing as Yugi turned to him at last, entire body trembling and violet eyes wide, their exhausted gaze urgent and soulful as he struggled to bite back tears. Solomon paused and bit his lip, sorely tempted to comfort the boy and yet wary that any attempt might serve only to freak the kid out even further. Finally deciding to meet half way, he clambered to his feet with a soft groan and ran a hand through his hair, leaning against the table and staring intently at Yugi. "We _will_ find him, Yugi. You just need to have faith."

"But it's been so long," Yugi whispered, blinking and turning away, clenching his fists. "Maybe the reason we haven't found him yet is because he really is …"

He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"_No_," Solomon rebuked sharply, shaking his head and walking over to Yugi's side. Gripping his Grandson's shoulders, he squeezed them reassuringly and shook his head again. "No," he said more softly this time, "you can't think like that. He was taken for a reason, and I highly doubt whoever _did_ take him wanted him dead. There's something else to it, I just wish I knew _what_."

"But if he's _not_ gone … why can't I sense him, Grandpa?" Yugi pleaded, unable to hold back the tears now. "If he really _isn't_ … you know … why does it feel like he is? There's nothing there! _Nothing_! Where he used to be, where I could feel him before – now it's just … _empty_! How could that be if he's really okay?"

Solomon pulled away, a hand on his chin as he thoughtfully contemplated the Egyptian artifact glinting distractingly up from its position around Yugi's neck.

"Hmm …" he said after a moment's pause, "well maybe that's simply down to the fact that the Pharaoh is his own person, now. Up until this thing began, the two of you were sharing the same body, which would explain why you could sense each other, even _communicate_ with each other. Perhaps once that link was severed, the connection between you was, too. Just because you can't sense him anymore doesn't mean he's gone, Yugi. It could simply be a side-effect to the Pharaoh obtaining his own body."

Yugi had considered that very possibility on more than one occasion, his racing thoughts leading him round and round in circles as he sat up for hours, unable to sleep, unable to _think, _just silently wishing for _something_, _anything_ that might suggest Yami's whereabouts or current condition. Trying to convince himself that his Dark was still alive had led Yugi to contemplate all too often just how it had come to be that their link no longer worked.

But hearing his Grandpa's thoughts on the matter did somehow ease his worries, if only marginally. If Solomon thought the same thing he did, then perhaps it was true, after all. Perhaps the fact he could no longer connect with his yami mentally _could _be explained away as an unwanted consequence of their souls splitting after so long.

Blinking his eyes back into focus, Yugi nodded once and dropped his gaze, jumping slightly when Solomon placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, only to blush and murmur a hasty apology to the floor.

"Get some rest, Yugi. You look dead on your feet, and you'll need to get your strength up. Your friends will be around to see you later. If you want, I can call you down about lunch time. You should really try and eat something."

Yugi shrugged noncommittally, touched by his Grandfather's worry but admittedly irritated by it, at the same time.

"I just haven't been in the mood for food lately, Gramps. Sorry," he admitted quietly, resting a hand on Solomon's for a second before pulling away and sighing heavily. "With my head the way it is, and so many questions in need of answers, eating's just become something of a chore."

"Yes," Solomon said sadly, making for the door as he returned to the shop, "and you look terrible for it. Trust me, Yugi. The sooner you get back on track, the sooner we'll find the Pharaoh. But with you suffering so, there's very little we can do. I _know_ being separated from half of your soul is bound to take a lot out of you, but if you don't try and look after yourself, saving the Pharaoh will be the least of our worries."

"I know," Yugi whispered, sparing his Grandfather an anxious glance before heading for the stairs. "I'll be down for lunch, Grandpa," he conceded before vanishing from sight.

Solomon Mutou stared after his Grandson, eyes ablaze with concern and apathy. With a subtle shake of his head, and an anxious glance at the ceiling as though the solutions to the world's problems were written upon it in invisible ink, he returned to the shop.

* * *

"Yugi?"

Téa bit her lip and distractedly knotted her fingers as she stared almost pleadingly across to Joey.

"Does anybody know where Yugi is today?"

Téa winced, feeling Miss Crawford's eyes burning into the back of her head. Snapping her gaze back to the front, deciding that Joey was being absolutely no help whatsoever, she sighed and avoided her teacher's penetrating azure gaze.

"He's er … he's sick, Miss Crawford. Mr Mutou asked me to tell you he wouldn't be coming in today."

She held her breath as Miley Crawford stared intently at her, apparently trying to decipher a hidden meaning behind her words. Finally admitting defeat, deciding Téa was speaking as close to the truth as she was permitted, she sighed heavily and nodded.

"I can't say I'm surprised," she conceded finally, returning her gaze to the register and frowning. "Although I must admit I'm becoming a little worried. He's been off an awful lot, lately."

Joey cleared his throat and leant back in his seat, the epitaph of cool, calm and collected as he fixed his teacher with an unconcerned stare.

"S'probably nothing to worry about, Miss," he declared loudly, sparing a warning glance in Téa and Tristan's general directions before absently wafting a stray lock of hair from his eyes. "There's been that bug goin' around lately. Maybe he caught dat."

Miley raised an eyebrow.

"A bug that's had him absent from school on and off for the best part of three months, Wheeler? I _highly_ doubt that."

Joey shrugged, his unconcerned expression being sorely tested by his racing heart.

But before he was forced to improvise a response to that, Téa spoke up in his place.

"Please, Miss Crawford, he didn't want anybody to know," she started softly, fixing Miley with an intense gaze, if only to avoid the undivided attention being bestowed upon her by the entire class. Biting her lip, she sighed heavily and lowered her gaze in mock-guilt. "He'll be so upset if he finds out I've told you this," she went on, dearly hoping her acting skills weren't as obvious as she believed them to be. "But Yugi's Grandpa's been really ill, lately. He was hoping to spend as much time with Mr. Mutou as possible, considering what the Doctors have told them …"

She fell silent, internally cringing at what Yugi would say if he could have heard what she'd just said.

'_Of all the things I could have said, I went for the oldest trick in the book! Great job, Téa, way to go! Some liar you are!_ _As if she_'_s gonna fall for the whole, 'Grandpa is dying and nobody but the friends of the family know about it' kick! I'm such a nimrod!'_

"Oh, bad news, I take it?" was the soft reply.

"Huh?" Téa asked, momentarily wrong-footed by the gullibility of her tutor. Blushing, she struggled to straighten her face and turned away, eyes downcast and expression serious. "Yes. Very. They've …" She paused, closing her eyes. '_Oh my God, I can't believe I'm actually about to say this,_' she thought, before opening them again and turning back to her teacher. "They've got a few weeks, at the most."

She heard a loud gasp from Joey's general direction, and the distinct sound of a harsh slap from Tristan. Glancing up, slowly so as not to rouse any unwanted attention, she saw the former shaking his head in mild disbelief, while the latter had his hand half-covering his face with his eyes closed, apparently having smacked himself in obvious denial.

"Oh, that's _terrible_," Miley whispered, tears welling. Téa considered her guiltily, peeking out through her hair and internally cringing.

'_Oh boy. This is _so _gonna get me at least a month's worth of detentions,_' she thought fearfully. '_There's absolutely _no way_ we're gonna be able to keep _this_ act up. What happens when Mr Mutou turns up for Parent's Evening three months from now? They'll know I lied …_'

"Well, I suppose it's only fair that we leave them be for now," Miley said finally, breaking the silence and effectively yanking Téa out of her self-berating. "But even so, that's an awful lot of lessons Yugi's missed. It'll take some catching up. And if he's not returned to school by next week, then I may have to see the Headmaster. Even _with_ such a devastating occurrence, he still needs his education. If you see Yugi, please let him know that I wish to see him as soon as possible, be it this week or next. And give him my condolences, too," she added quietly.

And on that note, she returned to the register, drumming through names in contemplative quietness. The class returned their attention to her, leaving Téa free to release the breath she'd held in for what felt like hours. Glancing over her shoulder, she shook her head in dismay and shrugged helplessly, spotting Joey's look of open-mouthed disbelief.

'_Oh, we are _so_ busted,_' she thought dismally, turning away and pulling her exercise book towards her, flicking idly through the pages and reaching for a pen. '_If not by the school , then by Yugi's Grandpa. Sorry Mr. Mutou,_' she mentally added, fully aware that he couldn't exactly hear her but mutely hoping he'd forgive her, all the same, '_but you _did_ want us to get Yugi through today. Too bad for _us_ it's not Yugi who's gonna get it in the neck when this thing comes back to bite me on the ass._'

* * *

Macros scowled darkly and slammed a fist down onto the make-shift desk in front of him.

"This is taking _far_ too long!" he shouted at no-one in particular, staring through the misted window at the congregation of trees and bushes outside, gazing off towards where he knew the clearing to be.

"Sir?"

Growling in impatience, he ran a clawed hand through his matted hair, black tangles tearing irritatingly at his pale scalp as the dark hood fell limp about his shoulders.

Turning to his minion, he shook his head in annoyance, dark eyes narrowed in distaste.

"What do _you_ want?" he spat, not in the mood for mincing words.

The Underling trembled under his piercing gaze, but stood his ground regardless, his features shrouded by the cloak he wore, but the fear escaping through his quivering voice, all the same.

"Y-you called for me, S-Sir?" he pressed, hands clasped tightly behind his back as he struggled to avoid Macros' infuriated look, quite obviously dearly wishing he could be anywhere else but where he was.

Macros' scowl deepened and he shrugged in disinterest, turning away and staring out of the window again.

"Well I can't recall why, so perhaps you should just …"

But he fell silent, the reason for this summoning finally returning to him as though somebody had flicked a light switch on inside his head.

"Oh," he murmured, his scowl fading away, only to be replaced by a lop-sided leer as his eyes burned unseeing paths through the overgrown forestry outside. "Wait, I remember now. There _is_ something I was hoping you could do." Glancing up, he frowned and turned back to the person standing frozen in the doorway. "What was your name again?" he asked conversationally, absently flicking an imaginary speck of dust from the arm of his cloak.

His minion squeaked in surprise, taking a terrified step backwards.

"L-Lucas, Sir," he declared nervously, the word reverberating around the room and leaving his blood to run cold. "You're standing in the h-house of my f-forefather," he added in a small voice, staring almost wistfully about the room before returning his gaze to the being standing motionless beside the window.

"Well then, _Lucas_," Macros called delightedly, running a lazy eye over the room's far and few possessions before turning to glare directly at the young man behind him, "I want you to do me a little favour. Accomplish what I ask of you, and your 'forefather' won't have died in vain."

Lucas gasped, eyes jamming closed in silent despair, only to be forced open again when Macros' 'task' was finally revealed to him.

Fixing his Underling with a beady but triumphant stare, Macros' tones were far too light and airy for comfort. The sound was suffocatingly unnatural, given his unkempt appearance and destructive nature. But unfortunately for Lucas, distressing though the barked command may have been, it also appeared to be echoing around his head without any sign of stopping.

"I need you to ready our guest. He's going on a trip, see. Somewhere he'll probably recognise, I'm sure, but _you_, on the other hand, will not. Given the fact you've barely left your village since birth let alone the country you were born in, this will most definitely be an experience and a half for you."

Lucas' eyes widened in horror, the full impact of what was being asked of him hitting home with brute force. Turning to stare at his captor in utter disbelief, he shook his head in refusal.

"I can't leave my family, Sir," he half-shouted half-pleaded. "_Please_! My daughter is not yet four! However will my wife explain to her where I've gone? And … leaving the _country_?! I _can't _do that! Never before have I set one foot over the boundaries of my village!"

But Macros wasn't up for discussions, and Lucas' arguments were insufferably futile.

"You will do as I say or both mother and daughter will be _slaughtered_. What your wife tells your little runt about your abrupt departure is of _no_ concern to _me_!" Macros snapped back, voice low, dangerous, almost challenging.

Tears welling, Lucas dropped his gaze and nodded submissively.

"Yes, Sir," he less than whispered, suddenly wishing for nothing more than to leave his once family home as quickly as possible. "I'll … I'll prepare the prisoner for the journey right away, Sir."

"Good," Macros murmured, staring out of the window again, a slow smile spreading across his face.

Lucas paused in the doorway, trembling fingers gripping so hard to the handle that his knuckles were white from the strain. Glancing back through heavily shadowed eyes, his lips quivering, he suppressed a gnawing desire to turn and run, and instead straightened up as best he could, the greyish-blue cloak fluttering around his ankles.

"And … and what do I tell the prisoner, Sir?" he asked apprehensively, staring at the back of Macros' head.

"Ahh, the Pharaoh."

His captor shrugged his indifference before glaring intently towards the clearing as though he could see it as clear as day through the shrubbery. After a moment's hesitation, he chuckled lightly to himself, inclining his head and letting his coal-black eyes slide closed.

"Tell him … he's going home," he said at last, a broad, freakish smile cracking his face as he blinked his eyes open again.

A vague, "yes, Sir," was all he received by way of response, followed seconds later by a soft _click!_ as the door was pulled closed behind Lucas' thankfully retreating back.

Macros smirked, a low sigh of contentment working its way easily up his throat as he leant against the desk with his arms folded over his chest.

"Soon, Pharaoh," he murmured to the ether, relishing in his beliefs that not a thing was going to go wrong with his newest plan. And what a flawless plan it was … His smirk only broadened as he realised just how foolish it was of him not to think of it sooner. Tapping his claws against his arms, he nodded to himself, watching as the Sun's rays washed in through the spotless window and filtered almost lovingly over the once plush, ruby-red carpet of the Village Noble's home.

And his smirk only widened.

"Soon enough I will have everything I need," he whispered to the silence.

It didn't answer, but he hadn't believed it would. He straightened up and lowered his hands again, eyes unfocussed as his mind ran over his newest brainstorm for the final time. "I'll return you to your friends, Pharaoh, but make no mistakes you'll be doing something for _me_ at the same time. Sending you back will draw them out. And as soon as your shrimpy little protégé is out in the open, the three Egyptian God Cards, along with his Millennium Puzzle, will be free for the taking."

His dark eyes glinted maliciously in the sunlight, clawed hands clenching into fists at his sides as he stared almost wistfully into the clouded skies overhead.

"And with them will come power _unimaginable_. Let's see you protect man-kind from me _then_, Pharaoh!"

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

_**To Be Continued …**_

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

**Thanks for reading! Reviews are shiny …  
And I **_**love**_** shiny things …**

**Blessed Be!**

**Hugs,  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**


	3. Of Strangers and Nightmares

**Fallen  
by  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"_We might as well be strangers in another town  
__We might as well be living in another time  
__We might as well be strangers,  
For all I know of you, now."_

_- Keane, 'We Might as Well Be Strangers'_

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**Chapter 2  
Of Strangers and Nightmares**

The hazy mist fogging his thoughts was abruptly lifted, as something long and pointed jabbed him in the ribs. A sharp flare of pain exploded through his veins, reawakening his damaged senses with a clarity unlike anything he had ever felt.

Weary beyond possibility, unable to believe it was time already, Yami whimpered in denial and tried to shift his side away from the sharpened object, only to receive a second and even more painful jab for his efforts.

"You _must_ wake up, Pharaoh," a voice murmured, sounding as though playing out to him through a damaged speaker, with the partially muffled words taking quite a long time to register in poor Yami's damaged and confused brain.

The former Pharaoh shivered, but to avoid a third poke with the sharp object, he oh-so-slowly managed to raise his head and let one swollen eye flutter gently open. It took a tremendous amount of effort to keep it open once he had succeeded.

The Stranger appeared to be blurred, his form slightly faded around the edges, as though Yami was seeing him through a misted glass window. This lack of focus didn't help to settle the gnawing sense of sickness that was starting to bubble up within his achingly empty stomach. So he forced his other eye open to try and rectify the problem. Unfortunately, with both eyes now open, the world was free to spin and tilt on its axis and left Yami's senses rolling around the secluded clearing without his permission, almost completely detached from his quivering body. He couldn't quite distinguish between ground and sky, as they danced together and twisted into one solid mass of hazy colour.

"N-no more," he rasped, throat parched and raw from lack of use. "_P_-_please_."

But even in his broken state, as he struggled to regain control of his haywire senses, Yami could tell that something was different about this Stranger. The robed man was holding the sharp stick in trembling hands, letting it hover mere inches from Yami's exposed rib-cage but not actually pressing it any further in. It seemed the Stranger had only jabbed him with it to drag him back to consciousness, and was extremely reluctant to cause any more pain than had been necessary to rouse him.

'_Makes a change,_' Yami thought, faintly.

"There is no need to fear, Pharaoh," the Stranger responded in a voice of forced calmness. "I am here to take you home."

It took a few moments for Yami to fully comprehend what the Stranger had just said to him. His ears were deceiving him, yet again. Maybe he was finally starting to crack. But it had _sounded_ like ... No. He didn't dare to hope.

"You're ... _w-what?_" he whispered, unable to believe it. 'Surely_, things aren't as simple as this? Why would Macros give up? Something is wrong!_'

Disbelieving thoughts chased themselves around his overworked brain and he shuddered, trying to shake away the pounding migraine they were creating before it could fully manifest itself. But the Stranger's next words could not have been any clearer.

"I speak the truth, King of Games. You are free."

Yami's heart soared as the words penetrated his unfeeling mind. As if to clarify the validity of that simple sentence, he felt the shackles about his wrists and ankles suddenly break away, sending him crashing to his knees as the support was disengaged. A painful jolt shot up his spine and as he landed awkwardly on a broken wrist, a wave of anaesthetizing soreness seemed to rob him of all thought and breath. The world was dissolving around him. His arms collapsed, unable to support him in his dazed and damaged state, sending him sprawling to the ground where the inescapable stench of spilled and drying blood attacked his nostrils.

"Fear not, my King," the Stranger whispered, his soothing baritones echoing over to the fallen teen as if from so very far away, just as the blackness at the corners of Yami's mind stepped in to shield him from the horrors of wakefulness. "You shall be home soon."

* * *

"_I can't believe it__. We've done it, Pharaoh ... we've really _done_ it!" Yugi wiped joyous tears from his eyes, blinking back a torrential downpour as he laid eyes upon his brother's brand new, _living_ form for the first time._

_Yami's legs felt like lead and he dropped to his knees in disbelief, a look of ultimate joy illuminating his amethyst eyes with a fire so intense, that Yugi was momentarily lost to their powerful depths. He held out trembling arms, staring at his own wiggling fingers with pure delight, before letting a wobbly hand come to rest against his chest. Yugi reached out, as well, and felt the first racing thumps of a heart that had not been free to beat for over 5'000 years pounding erratically beneath his fingertips. His young face lit up._

"_Yugi," Yami murmured, raising teary eyes to lock with his Light's. "I can't thank you enough," he started, unsure of what to say – overwhelmed by intense feelings of relief and weariness and happiness. "It has been the hardest few days of our lives, but we have prevailed. Our destiny has been fulfilled, thanks to you and the help of our friends. And now ... _this_ ... I just ... I ..."_

_But before he could utter another word – though admittedly his exhausted and shocked mind hadn't really formulated where he'd been intending on going with his speech – Yugi had darted forwards and wrapped his arms around Yami protectively in a bone-crushing hug of complete relief._

_"You have _no_ idea how long I've wanted to do this, Atem," he whispered, throat constricted as tears of happiness still streamed down his cheeks. "To finally hug you properly, after everything you've done for me. This is the greatest gift I could ever have asked for."_

_With a laugh unlike any Yugi had heard from his Dark in the many years they had been soul-partners, Yami returned the hug with gusto, relishing in the use of his own living, _working_ limbs for the first time in five thousand years._

_It was over. After so many adventures and discoveries, he was finally free of the Puzzle ... free to live out the__ life he had been forced to hide away all those centuries ago. Free to exist in a world of light and happiness, instead of the realm of darkness and shadows he had been trapped within for such a long time._

_He could barely comprehend it. But Yugi's relief and happiness was contagious, and Yami was soon laughing uncontrollably._

_The two brothers climbed to their feet, hands entwining as though neither wanted to ever let go of the other for fear they would slip away from this reality for good._

_But there was no need to fear._

_They had done it. Yami was free._

_The light of happiness hadn't fully died from Yugi's eyes, even as the treacherous whooshing sound penetrated his ears. The glittering silver dagger embedded itself easily in Yami's back before either of them knew what was happening. The first hints of severe pain forced Yami's eyes to widen in surprise, then fear, as an incredible weariness abruptly engulfed his collapsing senses._

"_Aibou," he whimpered, consciousness slipping away from him almost as quickly as the smile he'd been wearing moments before. A somewhat irritating buzzing sound beginning to drown out all other noises, increasing in pitch until he was desperate to clap his hands to his ears to block it out. But his arms were so heavy – they wouldn't obey his commands._

"_Yami?" He heard Yugi's cry of horror but it sounded distant and faint. A pair of cold and unforgiving arms wrapped around his chest, yanking his unresisting form backwards and away from the warmth of his Light. As pressure was applied to the embedded weapon just to the right of his spine, a wave of dizziness consumed his racing thoughts. His body was real, now. Making the pain inescapably real, as well. He wanted to call out to Yugi, wanted to know that Yugi was safe, wanted to tell him to run, quickly, before it was too late, but his cries and demands never escaped his failing mind._

_Yugi's screams echoed themselves into oblivion, and the darkness was absolute.

* * *

_

_He was running; running faster than he'd ever run in his life. Tears falling, stinging his cheeks like acid – no longer happy tears, but terrified, horrified, hopeless._

_The demon and his prey were gone; they had vanished in the blink of an eye, consumed by shadows, and they had left Yugi standing alone in the Pharaoh's tomb, his Dark cruelly ripped away from him just as victory had seemed so close..._

_He couldn't take it._

_"YAMI!" he screamed at the Heavens, wishing beyond all hope that he would awaken from such a vivid nightmare. He even went so far as to pinch the skin of his wrist in the hopes of bringing himself back to reality. But to no avail._

_He was already awake. This was one nightmare he would never be able to free his mind from._

"_Yami, please come back. _Please_," he whispered, voice cracking as he stumbled to an abrupt halt in the adjacent passageway. His friends were just as he had left them, still sprawled out on the floor, their minds free of the Pharaoh's memories but still recovering from the events of the past few days._

_He collapsed beside Joey, reaching a desperate hand out to grab his shoulder. And he shook it as though his life depended on it._

_Joey groaned and stirred. Yugi half-registered a mumble relating to "didn't eat all that pizza, so stop pestering me," but it appeared the urgency in the resurrection was enough to snap Joey clean back to reality._

"_Oh, hey, Yug," he said brightly, straightening up and stretching his arms, banishing the kinks that plagued his joints after many hours of lying in such an awkward position upon cold, unforgiving stone. Yugi watched as he glanced around them, catching his bearings. "Hey, _we're back_!" he realised. "Yeah, we _did_ it!" he punched the air with relief, and let his eyes drop down to meet Yugi's. But his happiness faltered as their eyes locked. He swallowed. "So where ... where's the Pharaoh, Yugi?" he asked softly, sudden realisation hitting him as he took in the boy's still-falling tears._

"_Oh, Joey," Yugi whispered softly, hiccupping. "He ... he was ..."_

_Their minds momentarily connected__, a beam of sudden understanding passing between them._

"_He was taken."_

_Those three words echoed ominously around Joey's head. It mocked his previous happiness, and Joey's insides seemed to freeze over._

_Before he could do or say anything to comfort his shattering friend,__ Yugi's eyes rolled back into his head, a tiny sigh escaped his quivering lips, and the final thing Yugi registered was Joey's anxious cry, as the strong arms of his best friend caught him before he could hit the ground.

* * *

_

"Yugi? Lunch is ready!"

Yugi cried out in surprise and fell sideways out of the bed, still tangled in the cocoon of bed-sheets he had managed to wrap himself up into. Cold sweat coated his skin and his breaths came in short, sharp gasps as he struggled to escape the tightened grip of the fabric currently suffocating him. When he had finally broken free, the bitter temperature of the room hit him like a bucket of icy-water being thrown clean over his head. Goosebumps erupted along his arms and he shivered involuntarily.

"Coming," he tried to call, but his voice was little more than a hoarse murmur. Sighing, trying to return his racing heart-beat back to normal, Yugi forced himself to his feet and stumbled almost drunkenly towards the door. He was in no way hungry, but he had promised Grandpa he would join the older Mutou for lunch. And no matter what, Yugi always kept his promises.

Deliberately avoiding looking at his reflection in the mirror, knowing full-well it would be a malnourished, broken-looking teen who stared back at him if he did take the time to see, Yugi mutely departed from the room, letting the door swing softly closed behind him.

* * *

The freezing rainwater hitting his face snapped Yami back to almost-full consciousness. He could feel every droplet smacking violently against his battered and broken body. Each drop was both a blessing and a curse in his intoxicated, half-oblivious state. He had no idea what was happening, and no idea who he was. No idea why he was here or where the pain that penetrated to his very core had sprung from. All he knew was that everything about him hurt. And the falling rain both soothed and abused his scorching skin at the same time.

"We're here. This is the place. Get that door open, _now_!"

The words meant nothing to Yami. They fluttered around his mind in a haze of discordant sound and broken syllables. His mind wandered away for a few minutes, and he knew nothing but ache and sorrow. There was a faint glimmer of hope about something blossoming just beneath the surface of his darkened heart, but he couldn't remember why it was there.

His mind was swallowed by the shadows for a few moments - which may only have been a few seconds but felt like an eternity for the broken soul. When he eventually managed to claw his way back to the surface of his wits, he felt something catch hold of his ankles. The freezing droplets were still pounding relentlessly away at any and all exposed skin it could access.

Aged wounds were suddenly enflamed, as whatever had grabbed his ankles suddenly began dragging him across the wet, muddy ground. He cried out in pain, the old dagger wound in his back screaming in protest of the tiny fragments of lilt and stone that were grazing deep into the damaged tissue. Once again, there was an ominous blackness trying to drag him under, but he refused to submit.

After what seemed like an eternity of pure agony, in which every open wound was pummelled by icy rain whilst salty tears of humiliation and ache escaped his blood-shot eyes, the person dragging him suddenly let go. It took Yami a few seconds to realise the rain had also stopped. A loud and ominous creaking of heavy, rusted doors filled his pounding head, leading him to surmise he had been dragged into a building of some sort. '_Shelter_._'_

It smelled of old, rotten chemicals mixed with years worth of damp and neglect. The sounds of his captor's footsteps echoed around the room, suggesting it was a large building. _Massive_, in fact.

But Yami didn't know where he was. He couldn't comprehend anything about himself or his surroundings, couldn't recall why he had been brought to this desolate place, nor what was going to happen to him now that he was here. Not that he really cared, anymore.

"Make the call, Lucas."

The agony of unfamiliar wounds blocked out the sounds of bickering and shouting from his nameless captors. There was the faintest sound of a phone ringing somewhere above him, but Yami was too far gone to be concerned by it.

He let the darkness consume both his mind and his soul, breathing a tiny sigh of relief as the shadows gently gathered him up and hurried to protect him from the world.

* * *

Yugi heaved a heavy sigh, playing idly with the bowl of soup in front of him. He could feel Grandpa's steady and intense gaze fixated on his malnourished form, and forcibly took another mouthful of chicken broth if only to satisfy the old man sitting in front of him.

It burned his tongue and struggled to pass the unwanted lump of fear still clogging his throat. He forced a tiny smile and dipped his spoon again, intending to take another mouthful, but his stomach lurched horribly at the thought of eating any more. Yugi felt the heat rush clear of his face, and knew without testing it that if he lifted a hand to his features, he would feel clammy skin beneath the touch. Solomon appeared to have realised this, as well, for he hurried to his feet and whisked the bowl out of the way before the smell could enrage the rearing snake of sickness any further.

"Well, you've had _something_, at least. That's all we can ask, for now," he murmured softly, trying to keep his tone positive. But Yugi could sense the feelings of disappointment and worry radiating from his Grandfather in waves. For the fifth time that day, he could feel fresh tears welling in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Grandpa," he whispered, choking back a sob and resting his head against the soothing coolness of the table. "I tried."

"I know you did, my boy, and I'm very proud of you. I just wish there was some way to make everything alright again. I hate seeing you like this." Yugi lifted his head a fraction in time to see the older Mutou run a shaking hand over his face in apparent defeat. And the welling tears could not be held back any longer.

"Where is he?" he wailed, shoulders trembling violently. "I_ need_ Yami!" Solomon hurried to his grandson's side and briskly swept him up in a comforting hug, wishing for all the world he could absorb the child's sufferings and take them for himself. How he longed to see Yugi's carefree smile, even just one more time. He knew he would never take anything so precious for granted, ever again. Yugi wept into his chest, soaking through the grey shirt and overalls he was wearing. "I c-can't take this anymore! I feel so alone, so _empty_. I just ... I don't know w-what to d-do!"

Solomon sighed heavily, rubbing soothing circles into his grandson's trembling back. It seemed that this conversation always had to pan out exactly the same. No matter how many times they came to dwell upon the awful events, the same thoughts and solutions arose, eager to be discussed. And the two of them had had quite enough of running around in proverbial circles whilst searching for much needed answers. But Solomon Mutou couldn't think of anything else to say, aside from yet another variation of the same supportive comments he had shared during the three long months his two grandsons had been separated.

A lump caught in _his_ throat, at that thought. '_Grandson? Yes, I suppose he _is.' He felt tears of his own begin to paw nervously at his eyelids, eager to be set free, but he held them back. He needed to be strong for Yugi. '_They are brothers, Yugi and the Pharaoh. And I am forever in the debt of such an incredible man. He saved me. And he has saved Yugi. And indeed, the entire world, it seems. But to be repaid like _this? _Oh, my boy, wherever could you be? I have never told you, but I hope you know you are part of my family and always will be._'

Solomon fixed Yugi with a determined stare, jaw set tight as he pulled away slightly, the better to make sure Yugi was paying close attention to him.

"Have faith, my child. The Pharaoh will be with us soon. They can't keep him away from you forever. You just have to stay strong."

"B-but it's been s-so long. H-how can I stay s-strong when months have p-passed with n-_nothing_?" Yugi gasped out between racking sobs. Everything hurt – his head, his _heart_, his soul ... everything ... He just wanted it to end.

The Game Shop doorbell echoed back through the house, pulling the two Mutous from their misery-entailed musings. Yugi sniffed loudly and exhaled a deep, steadying breath. "That'll be the guys. Best let them in, Gramps," he murmured, turning away from his grandfather's warming embrace to wipe his eyes on the sleeve of his jacket.

Solomon nodded.

"Perhaps it will do you good to spend a little time with your friends, Yugi. You hardly see them, these days. They've been sorely missed around here, considering it used to be impossible to separate you all."

Yugi almost smiled.

* * *

They'd sat in silence for the best part of twenty minutes before Joey decided he couldn't take the quiet, any longer.

"Ahh, come on Yug, _please_. Speak to us, buddy!" His tone was pleading and desperate. Yugi was pulled violently from his thoughts and had to cover up his jumpy response by rising from the sofa and hurrying to get a glass of water from the kitchen. When he returned, his friends were watching his approach with wary eyes.

"I'm sorry, guys," he said at last, as he crossed the threshold and made for the couch again. "I'm just ... not feeling myself, these days. Don't quite know what to say, to be honest."

Téa considered him with a solemn expression.

"I guess there's been no word, then?" she asked, sadly. Yugi shook his head gravely and she suppressed a moan of sadness with great difficulty. She, too, fell silent for a moment, staring at Yugi through teary eyes, unsure of what to say next. "We've missed you at school," she settled on eventually, when the silence had once again dragged itself out for too long. Yugi shot her a side-ways glance.

"I've missed you guys, too," he responded sincerely. "And were I up for it, I'd have been back ages ago. But as it is, I barely have the strength to walk up and down the stairs, let alone make it through an entire day at Domino High. Do the teachers suspect anything?" he asked, trying to keep his mind on less depressing topics.

To his surprise, Téa blushed crimson and swapped a look with Tristan and Joey, who were deliberately avoiding her gaze. "Well, umm ... they ... they _did_ suspect something ... before ... but then we -" Joey cleared his throat ominously and she faltered, "- that is to say _I _sort of told Miss Crawford something to get her off your back."

Yugi felt a tiny smile tug at the corners of his mouth for the first time in months.

"What did you tell her?" he asked, softly, hands knotting nervously in his lap as he considered her guilty expression.

She glanced pleadingly in Joey's direction but he was still refusing point blank to meet her gaze. She sighed heavily.

"Oh, Yugi. I kind of, might have told her that Grandpa was -"

But that was when the phone rang.

She fell eerily silent, and all four of them turned to stare at it in surprise and fear. Nobody seemed to want to answer it. With a nervous glance at his three friends, Yugi struggled to his feet, his knees trembling and an ominous shiver crawling up his spine.

"Who'd be ringin' you this late, pal?" Joey asked, as curious as the rest of them.

"I don't know," Yugi whispered, reaching a shaking hand out to reach for the receiver. He couldn't explain why, but he had a nasty feeling this wasn't going to be a call he would enjoy taking part in.

"H-hello? Game Shop?" he answered, trying to keep the tremble out of his voice.

For a long moment, there was silence from the other end of the line. Voice obtaining a little more strength as the bizarreness of the situation settled in, Yugi cleared his throat and tried again. "Hello? Is anyone there?" He couldn't think why, but his heart was hammering madly against his chest.

Just as he was about to put the phone down, a hoarse whisper echoed out towards him through the speaker.

"The Pharaoh can be found at Warehouse D17, Domino Pier. Come quickly. He is waiting for you."

With that, the line went dead.

For a second, all was quiet; not so much as a breath could be heard.

Then the phone fell from Yugi's slackened grasp and hit the floor with a loud clatter, shattering the ominous silence like a gunshot.

It took a great deal of mental willpower for Yugi to stop himself from following its example.

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

_**To Be Continued …**_

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

**Hmm, so how was that? Hope ya'll liked!  
Reviews are Love!**

**Blessed Be!**

**Hugs,  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**


	4. Let the Rain Fall

**Fallen  
by  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**A/N : **Hey, just wanted to jump in here and say thanks so much for your reviews! I'm overwhelmed by the positivity you have all shown me – I really can't thank you enough! Hope this chapter doesn't disappoint!

Mmm'kay. On with the story …

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"_We might as well be strangers in another town  
We might as well be living in another time  
We might as well be strangers,__  
For all I know of you, now."_

_- Keane, 'We Might as Well Be Strangers'_

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**Chapter 3  
Let the Rain Fall**

Less than five minutes had passed before the four anxious teens were shrugging into their coats and running full pelt towards the door. Yugi's cheeks were still tear-stained, but his expression was now one of defiant determination. Solomon Mutou called out to him from the kitchen, and Yugi very nearly jumped out of his skin. He'd almost forgotten his Grandfather was still up, as well.

"Where are you kids off to at this late hour? Don't you have school in the morning?"

The four shared a nervous look, before all eyes swivelled expectantly to face Yugi. Joey was idly scratching his head and Tristan's one-shoulder shrug told Yugi that _he_ was the one tasked with getting them out of _this_ one.

Mentally scowling, he tried to keep his expression as neutral as possible and fixed his grandfather with an (hopefully) innocent-looking stare, forcing a small smile.

"I need some air, Gramps. I've been stuck in here for days, y'know? The guys are coming with me, so I'll be safe. We won't be long, I just ... just need to get out and clear my head."

His grandfather frowned, knowingly. "Hmm, you _do_ realise it's throwing it down, out there, don't you?"

Joey squashed a groan of irritation before it could fully escape him. Téa flashed him a warning look and he carefully straightened his face, once again.

"It's fine, _really_. We won't be long, I promise," Yugi responded, not missing a beat.

Solomon considered the four of them for a few seconds, quite obviously not buying their tale. But at the same time, the prospect of Yugi actually _wanting_ to get out of the house for the first time in many weeks was too great an opportunity to pass on.

"Okay then," he finally conceded. "But wrap up warm, and you three take good care of him, won't you?" he added, nodding once to Joey, Tristan and Téa in turn.

"Thanks, Grandpa," Yugi sighed, his gratitude incredibly apparent. The four turned tail and hurried for the door with renewed vigour, upturning their jacket collars to protect themselves against the biting chill of the wind.

"Yeah, thanks Mr. Mutou," Téa called over her shoulder as she vanished from sight with a tiny wave.

Solomon Mutou nodded one final time, before shuffling over to the staircase. With a quick, sneaky glance back at the departing teens, he shook his head once before disappearing from view, just as the door clicked softly closed behind them.

* * *

"Oh man, this has _got_ to be a trap, you guys," Tristan shouted out to them, struggling to make his voice heard over the pounding hum of the steadily falling rain.

The exact same thought had crossed through Yugi's mind as well, but unlike Tristan, he didn't seem to be all too bothered by the notion.

He lifted his head slightly so as to ensure his weary voice carried over to his friends. "I know, but the person on the phone sounded so sincere and so _fearful_. It wasn't acting, Tristan, the guy was being totally honest with us! I could never forgive myself if I let my _only _chance to get him back slip away, just because I was scared that something might happen to _me, _instead." He shook his head in an attempt to whip his soaking blonde bangs out of his eyes, and hurried on, a fountain of hope blossoming deep within his soul. "I _know_ the Pharaoh will be there, I just _know_ it."

Joey nodded his agreement, expression grim. "Yeah, it's a trap, alrigh'. But they've made two _grave_ miscalculations. Not only are we about to get the Pharaoh back from 'em since they've been kind enough to return him, but they're going to have the _four of_ _us_ to deal with, not just you, Yug. They'll be sorry they _ever_ messed with us, don't you worry!"

"Too right," Tristan added, confidently. "You're not on your own, pal. And we're not going to let _anything else _happen to you or the Pharaoh, you got that?"

Yugi shot him a watery smile. "Yeah, got it," he whispered, knowing full well they probably wouldn't hear it, but grateful all the same. Suddenly spurred on, he doubled his pace, trying to ignore the icy sting of the pounding water droplets as they splashed onto his face. His jacket was already soaked through, but he refused to let it bother him. The thought of finally seeing Yami again after so many months of waiting made him feel almost immune to the cold and the rain, and the protesting ache amassing in his over-taxed limbs. A strength he hadn't experienced for too many weeks was now coursing through his veins with a vengeance. He may have been cold, and tired, and _terrified, _but he felt alive again for the first time since this horrific ordeal had begun.

Alive and determined.

They pressed on, running full-speed through the winding alleyways and deserted streets, every step taking them closer to the Pier, closer to their fallen friend.

'_Don't worry, Yami_,' Yugi whispered to the nothingness shrouding half of his soul – the half his Dark had once occupied. He shot a glance at the unrelenting skies above, and sighed_. _'_Not long, now. We're coming to get you._'

* * *

Macros was feeling incredibly restless. The (former) Village Noble's house was far too small for his liking, and his constant pacing of the tiny room was an act born from pure frustration and irritation. The more circuits he prowled round the cramped office, the more tiresome it became. And yet, on he proceeded, regardless.

Back and forth, round and round and round again, never stopping; the momentum just refused to relent, no matter how much he wished for his legs to cease their endless, _pointless_ roaming.

Every now and again, he would force himself to take a seat behind the simple-but-polished oak desk, and there he would sit with his head propped up on upturned palms, staring out into the pouring rain. And he'd think. He'd consider the size of the room, and realise just how little space the deceased Noble's home really contained. This thought would unpleasantly remind him of the many millennia he had been forced to spend trapped in the Shadow Realm, forever condemned to prowl the darkness in solitude with nothing and no-one to break the monotony, or stifle the cold sense of death and decay that hung around his being like an intoxicating veil.

At which point during his mental wanderings, he would find himself overwhelmed by an intense feeling of claustrophobia, and thus, the pacing would resume.

But the confusion and conflict was too great a distraction for Macros to focus on physically stopping his incessant wanders. Too many thoughts craved attention, and with so much to think about ... well, that restless energy had to go _somewhere_.

And so he paced.

He paced and he pondered.

He had given the order to have his men withdraw from the warehouse, and was certain they would be on their way back to him, even as he stood here.

But had he _really_ made the right decision?

The Items he so desperately craved for were making a bee-line for Domino Pier at this very moment in time. He could _easily _outsmart a teenager – or _group_ of teenagers, had little Yugi decided to bring back-up with him. What chance did a few young school-children have against the strongest and most experienced members of this village? Men who hunted on a daily basis to provide food for their families, and who had built themselves a comfortable and manageable settlement with no assistance from the outside world, whatsoever.

It amazed Macros. This village had _everything_ it could ever need. The people led simple but fulfilling lives with no complexities to worry about, no wars to fight, no criminals to punish or strangers to feel suspicious towards (well, not until _recently_, anyway). They simply ... _were_. They lived, and that was all.

Were he at all familiar with the emotion, he would have acknowledged the small but prominent sense of guilt on his part for ruining their perfectly preserved existence. But as it was, he merely saw this village as a means to an end. Five thousand years of loneliness and suffering had evidently shredded all traces of compassion and morality within the ancient spirit. And they had been replaced with hatred, darkness and a lust for revenge that could not be sated until the Pharaoh's powers resided within his own veins.

So far, his plan to accomplish just that was playing out exactly as he had expected it would. Unfortunately, he was harboured by last-minute doubts. Common sense suggested he remains focussed on the original plan; it would require a little patience from him, but ultimately, the plan was flawless. Very little – if anything – could go wrong, he was certain of that.

But at the same time, it meant he would be forced to wait around for the opportune moment. And he was _sick_ of waiting. He could quite as easily have been preparing to end the whole affair any minute now – all he needed to do was silence the whelp who carried the three Egyptian God Cards and the Millennium Puzzle ...

But no, that would mean abandoning his original plan, and as a man of tactical mind, he could see far too many potential flaws and holes that would ultimately result in Macros _never_ obtaining the necessary items.

Better to play it safe and stick to the plan. It appeared to be unfolding quite perfectly, as it was – yes, he would have been a fool to try and intervene when, at this rate, he would be Pharaoh in a matter of months ...

Macros finally paused in his pacing to stand and stare at the torrential downpour outside, watching as the giant droplets of water collided one after another with the office window. He loved the rain. It spoke volumes when he himself was lost for words. How fitting a setting for the events that were about to unfold for little Yugi and the Pharaoh. And all thanks to his water-tight plan of action.

Yes, he had waited many thousands of years for revenge. So what was the rush? A few more months couldn't hurt. And this was nothing if not the _perfect_ opportunity to obtain a thorough understanding of his enemies without them ever realising just what awaited them.

In the meantime, the Villagers would just have to put up with his restless and obsessive wanderings around their former-Noble's stately home for a little bit longer.

* * *

Téa stumbled to a halt against a flickering lamppost, resting her hands against her knees and struggling to draw in much needed breaths. Yugi hesitated at the sight, reducing his pace and turning to her with a look of worried urgency.

"Now's not really the time to be resting, Téa," he called out to her, matter-of-factly.

She waved a half-hearted hand, eyes glistening with frustration and guilt.

"I know," she panted, absently gripping at a stitch in her side. "I just need a sec."

Joey and Tristan, too, skidded to a stop at this revelation. They took a few moments to compose themselves before Joey straightened up and took to straining his eyes against the gloom in a vain attempt to decipher their surroundings.

"Hey, you guys," he called, voice serious. "We're here."

Yugi turned to see where he was indicating, and felt a shiver nibbling at his spine. The dimmed orange light permeating the vicinity from the damaged street lamp above Téa's head was just enough to illuminate a small circle around them.

And sure enough, just to Joey's left was a huge and ominous-looking warehouse door. Yugi ignored the constant onslaught from above, no longer able to feel the numbing cold droplets of rainwater. Instead, he drew his attention across to the sizeable plaque placed on the left side of the enormous door.

'_Warehouse E22,_' it read.

For just a moment, the silence was almost suffocating. Even the spritely sounds of the night's heavy downpour weren't acknowledged by the four drenched and shivering teenagers as they simply stood there, staring in wonder at the rows upon rows of warehouses channelling down either side of them.

And suddenly, noise returned, slamming into Yugi's ears with the force of a speeding freight train, leaving him reeling. The gasps and hushed whispers of his friends offset by the roaring of the rain and the distant callings of sirens were mixing into a cacophony of unwanted sounds. He couldn't keep from swaying slightly, a trembling hand lifting to his head before he could catch himself and replace the capable facade he had previously been wearing.

He was struggling, he knew, due to the months he had wasted, hardly eating and rarely sleeping. Running the many miles towards Domino Pier had pretty much sapped any residual energy he had managed to save over the past few weeks in an instant; he should realistically have been expecting _something_ like this to happen, if he was being totally honest with himself.

But thankfully, the others didn't appear to detect his moment of weakness, anyway.

Joey was too busy counting the buildings, running to those nearest to peer eagerly at the numbers so as to ascertain which way led to '_D17_'. Tristan kept glancing back over his shoulder at the way they had come from; he couldn't suppress a whistle of ... well, either annoyance or amazement, Yugi couldn't tell, though he was sure it had something to do with the fact they had run a good quarter of a mile into the warehouse base without even realising where they were. And Téa was still leaning against the lamppost for support, though her breaths weren't as laboured, now, which Yugi took to be a good sign.

"You guys," he started, voice hoarse. He cleared his throat slightly, taking a moment to compose himself as the three turned to him in response, before licking his dry lips in an attempt to steady his already shredded nerves. "You know, if you wanted to get back, I wouldn't mind. I can -"

His friends wore identical '_Don't-even-start-that-again_' looks that left Yugi visibly wilting before he could finish his statement.

Téa grinned, rolling her eyes. "Sure, because I've just run three miles at 11:00 at night in the pouring rain in _high heels_ for the fun of it, Yugi." He appeared to want to argue the case with her, but she shook her head. "We're here, now. And we're coming. So ssshh," she added for good measure.

As touched as he was, Yugi couldn't help but feel a little frustrated, at the same time. Who knew _what_ was going to be waiting for them inside that warehouse! Why did he always have to lead the people he cared about into danger? And why did they never heed his warnings? But his frustration was admittedly short-lived, once he realised exactly how much it meant to him; the fact they willingly volunteered _every time_ just so he wasn't running into danger all alone...

"Come on, Yug. The Pharaoh needs us," Joey shouted over the ruckus. "The warehouses count down, this way. E21 here, see? So shouldn't be too far."

Yugi nodded and raced after him as Joey took off towards the middle of the bay, with Téa and Tristan not even a beat behind them.

* * *

The arguing voices above him were disjointed and seemed to be somewhat lacking in clear focus and steady volume.

"... Need to leave, _right_ now ..."

"... Not think ... should wait until –?"

"_Move it_!"

Very little appeared to want to register in his brain, but the next obvious sound he managed to digest was the loud creaking of a rusted door, followed by an even louder bang as that very same door was slammed closed behind whoever had decided to abandon him.

Where a moment before there had been enough noise to rouse him from what little sleep he had managed to capture for himself, there was now only a pounding, echoing quietness that left every nerve end tingling with apprehension. Even the steady rainfall beyond the corroded gates of his new prison had fallen into complete muteness. The sudden absence of speech and sound left Yami idly wondering if he had lost the ability to hear. That is, until the ragged sounds of his own half-hearted attempts to draw in much needed oxygen began to consume his thoughts. The noises sounded foreign and unnatural, even to his own ears - A dying man's last breaths, horrendously magnified by the sheer enormity of his current jail.

In the hopes of drowning out the pitiful sounds, Yami tried to focus on the now noticeable absence of his former captors. It took a few moments, but Yami managed to tug his eyes open just enough to scan his immediate surroundings. After turning his head a little too far, causing an intense agony to spasm periodically up and down his spine, he ascertained movement to be a bad idea, and instead settled on blinking the grime (and blood) out of his eyes to slightly clear his vision. As the hazy fog began to lift, Yami was greeted with the sight of a dimly lit open-plan space currently devoid of anything that could have been considered interesting to look at. The only light in the room was falling from a half-shattered, amber-flickering beam situated a little way above his current position. While not big enough to illuminate the entire room, it gave him an all too clear view of the colourless and unforgiving concrete floor upon which he was currently lying. And it highlighted even further the sudden nonexistence of his previous subjugators.

Yami couldn't tell why he was so overjoyed by their absence, considering they had most definitely condemned him to a slow and painful death, trapped alone in the confines of an unused building. But the simple fact that they had left him in peace at the end of all things caused an almost tangible happiness to blossom like a wild flower within his heart.

His death would not be witnessed. And he would not be missed.

There was someone ... someone he had wanted to see before it happened, though ... someone he needed to say goodbye to. An overwhelming urge to apologise for something, as well, was eating away at his thoughts.

Yami frowned, trying to collect the disarray of half-formed memories and reorganise them into an order that made vague sense to his falling mind. Everything he had faced over the last few months – all of the injuries that were, at this very moment, counting down the seconds to his demise - had been willingly taken in the place of someone else ... he had accepted the punishment, _gladly_, if it spared any harm befalling his ... friend? Whatever had happened to him, Yami desperately wanted to see that person just one more time and tell them how sorry he was for putting them through such pain and suffering. No doubt they would have missed him, greatly.

'_Or would they?_'

No doubt they would have worried constantly about him ...

'_That's what you think. Who would miss you? You have no friends, here. This isn't your time. Your friends died out thousands of years ago, Pharaoh._'

Yami's breath hitched as he strained the muscles in his right wrist, unconsciously balling it into a protective fist. His eyes slid closed and he tried to focus his mind on evening out his uncontrollable breaths.

'_What's the point in that? You don't have much longer, anyway._'

Yami wanted to cry out to the unknown person taunting him, whether to beg them for help or to tell them to leave him alone, he wasn't sure. But his vocal chords were disobeying his commands.

'_Not long now,_' the mysterious voice crowed. Yami bit down hard on his lip in an attempt to block the words out. He couldn't be certain if the speaker was himself; there was no doubt the words were only being whispered inside his own head – a voice of reason, maybe? Yami wasn't too familiar with the complex workings of the mind during a state of crisis. It was perfectly logical that his mind would have something to say, at the very end. The fact that the voice seemed to have an almost ... _feminine _quality about it didn't go unnoticed by Yami, but in his current predicament, he wasn't physically or mentally capable of dwelling on that unusual anomaly.

'_Yes, perfectly logical indeed. You should be grateful you've got me to keep you company, Pharaoh. After all, it's not like there's anyone else._'

A twinge of regret and sorrow nibbled at Yami's heart, and he tried to suppress a tiny moan of longing. His wounds were screaming in agony as the icy cold of the concrete seeped into them. His soaked clothes were causing shivers to attack his body whilst his limbs began to ache and protest at the lack of use. Shaking his head miserably, he tried to encourage the blackness to take him for the last time.

'_Willing it yourself, now?_'

Irritated, Yami cracked an eye open.

'_Who are you?_' he mentally asked, unable to speak the words aloud.

'_I could well be the last person you will ever speak to,'_ the strange voice replied. '_Or ... maybe I'm the one who's keeping your brain working, and thus is keeping you alive for the moment. You should be thanking me, not scrutinising me._'

Had he the strength or the ability, Yami would have laughed at that. As it was, he managed a strangled choke and had to force his eye closed again to stave off the sudden wave of dizziness that attacked as his chest heaved.

'_Who knew talking to yourself could keep death at bay,_' he mused as the nausea subsided.

'_Keep the brain active, that's the key. If I give you something to think about, your body won't want to submit until it has fully figured out the problem you've been presented with. And though you might be feeling otherwise ... while those injuries may be severe ... well, you've got a few hours in you, yet._'

Yami frowned. '_You seem to know a lot about me,_' he murmured. '_How is that possible? If you really were an extended voice of my own mind, surely you'd be thinking things the same way I do._'

The voice laughed softly. '_Ahh, well. You will just have to see. If you manage to survive this, we shall talk again, Pharaoh. All will become clear, soon enough._'

Yami felt steady panic rising in his chest. He groaned, opened his eyes and struggled to raise his head a little from the ground. The movement only served to send more shockwaves along his spinal cord.

'_Wait,_' he pleaded softly, '_don't go. Don't leave me here!_'

The voice seemed to consider him for a few seconds, before retreating, the words fading away as though the speaker was walking out of the room.

'_You have other things to occupy your mind, now._'

A twisted pang of loneliness clawed its way through his battered and bruised body. Whether the voice was real or just a figment of his imagination, it had been welcome company amidst the dark and oppressive grasp of his failing mind. He didn't want to be alone, not now.

But the only thoughts permeating his brain now were ones of panicked resignation.

Yami shivered against the chilly concrete floor, unable to hold back the welling tears any longer.

* * *

"D17," Yugi whispered, staring at the faded plaque with a mixture of inevitable relief and all-consuming terror. His friends skidded to a halt a few paces behind him, each one glaring apprehensively at the sealed doorway. Yugi hesitated, then turned to face them, his dripping blonde bangs plastered to his face, framing an expression of reserved determination. His clothes were soaked through thanks to the torrential downpour, leaving the navy blue jacket looking more like a midnight black jacket in the sparse orange light shining down from the streetlamp above his head. With one final glance at the ominously faded plaque, Yugi returned his full attention to Téa, Joey and Tristan. He sighed heavily.

"I don't know what we're about to find in there," he started, cringing as a montage of horrific possibilities played out beneath his skull – each one depicting a more disturbing and gruesome scene than its predecessor. He paused, wringing his hands nervously and shaking the sopping blonde locks from his eyes. "But if anything looks like it's about to go wrong, you guys have to promise me you'll leave me and leg it. I couldn't bear the thought of putting you in even more danger. I know I can't change your minds about coming in with me, but that doesn't mean I'm being any less conservative about your wellbeing – so, no matter what, if things take a turn for the worst, promise me you'll get yourselves to safety and alert the authorities."

Téa lifter her chin and opened her mouth, clearly about to argue her case, but Yugi shook his head adamantly.

"I don't want to hear it, Téa. As long as I know you guys are safe, I don't care _what_ happens to me in there. Promise me you'll look after yourselves."

Téa bit her lip, but Tristan and Joey nodded their understanding before she could voice her doubts, effectively closing the discussion – not that Yugi had left it open for debate in the first place.

Satisfied, he returned his attention to the door.

Now that he was standing here, with only this one final barrier between him and his Dark, the situation seemed all the more real to him. If the thugs who had taken Yami were still in there, and this had indeed been a trap to lure Yugi out all along ... well, he was walking right into it with open arms. And if they got him, all of Yami's sacrifices would have been in vain. Everything the Pharaoh had been forced to endure over the course of the past few months would have been for nothing.

But he couldn't just leave Yami there ... no, he couldn't. No way. As scared as he was, Yugi knew he was doing the right thing.

"It looks locked," he murmured, more to himself than to the others. He took an anxious step forward, stopping right in front of the button mechanism situated just beside the numeric plaque. "What if it's alarmed?"

Joey frowned, shaking his head.

"Nah, I doubt it will be. How else could those creeps have gotten in without setting the alarms off? There'd be police all over the place, by now."

Yugi nodded, satisfied. And with a trembling hand, he let his fingers hover for just a second above the button, the icy droplets of rain snaking in between them and sliding away down his wrist. The effect was almost soothing, the cold numbing his arm, but the shivers only grew in intensity and a few seconds was all it took for Yugi's mind to tell him he needed to get in there and fast. If not, they would likely freeze to death out here, and what use would that be to the Pharaoh?

Mind set, he closed his eyes, grit his teeth and pressed the button.

The hydraulics hissed and spluttered into life, the door painstakingly slowly raising from the ground up with a reluctant, scraping rumble. All four teens stared at it in abject fascination, straining their eyes into the gloom as the building's interior was oh-so-slowly revealed to them. No alarms went off, and there were no sounds of movement or even existence coming from the hidden depths of the warehouse.

Though, _that_, of course, didn't mean anything. Were the captors still inside, they were hardly going to stand around in open view waiting for him.

"Stay together," Joey whispered in warning. "Keep between us, Yugi. If anyone wants to get at you, they're gonna have to get through _us_, first."

Yugi mutely nodded, letting Joey and Téa take the lead, before slipping in behind them in front of Tristan who had his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

The pitch-black room took some adjusting to. The only source of light was a flickering bulb located three-quarters of the way into the massive warehouse. It's light was a mere pinprick, from where they were standing, but Yugi took it to be a good sign. If there _were_ others around, they'd be hard pressed to see him and his friends, just as they were struggling to make anything out through the gloom, themselves.

Seeing it to be as good a place to start as any, Yugi nudged Joey in the back and waved vaguely at the swinging light. His indication – '_Might as well start over there._'

Joey nodded in agreement and together, they hurried as quickly and as quietly as they could towards the miniature source of light.

Téa suddenly squeaked and tugged at Yugi's hand, her fingers like ice against his own trembling ones.

"_Look_!" she breathed, one hand flying to her mouth.

Yugi strained to focus on the tattered being lying directly beneath the dimmed beam of light. A collection of rags – an outfit that had once been of the most beautiful shade of navy now stained irrecoverably with blood and dirt and scorch marks. The creature's shirt had been torn open, leaving bloodied and bruised skin exposed to the cold, marks of all kinds of sickly shades littering the once perfectly preserved chest. One arm was sticking out at a bizarre angle, the fingers clenched with nails digging into the tender skin of its palm hard enough to leave bloody trails dripping like water droplets over the wrist. The boy's hair was matted, the ends scorched and the blonde bangs tarnished beyond recognition, hanging limply amidst a bed of soaked and grimy black locks. Hair that only one other person in the entire world – aside from Yugi, himself - possessed.

"No, _Yami_," Yugi whispered, voice cracking as he ran forward, throwing all caution to the winds, no longer caring whether or not the people who had taken Yami were even now preparing to jump out and grab _him_. Choking on a cry, Yugi dropped to his knees beside his Dark, tears falling like icy daggers from puffy eyes as he reached out a trembling hand, brushing hair gently away from the Pharaoh's sweat-soaked forehead. Yugi paled as Yami flinched at the contact, the tiniest of groans escaping him as the movement jarred his injuries. Faded crimson orbs blinked blearily up at him, unable to focus. Yugi took note of the drying tear tracks which were standing out with an unnatural clarity against the boy's chalk-white, sunken cheeks. The lack of recognition in his Dark's eyes left Yugi's hope spiralling away from him. "I'm here, Yami," he murmured, still automatically brushing stray strands of hair away from Yami's face, the motion soothing him almost as much as it was for his Dark. Trying to smile but unable to force his muscles to work, he shivered as Yami's eyes fluttered closed. "We're going to look after you. You're safe, now, I promise."

After what felt like an age of completely shocked silence, - during which the four teens stared on in total horror at the broken being lying at their feet - Tristan cleared his throat loudly, and Yugi glanced up just in time to see him idly scratching his head.

"Umm, I don't want to be the barer of even _more_ bad news, you guys," he started tentatively, voice so soft it was almost a whisper, "but has anyone actually thought about how we're going to get him home?"

Yugi's heart sank.

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

_**To Be Continued …**_

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

**Cheers for reading! More up soon!**

**Blessed Be!**

**Hugs,  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**


	5. A Fine Line

**Fallen  
by  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**A/N : **Happy (almost) Christmas, everybody! :D

Apologies for the delay – Uni and work; banes of any aspiring writer's life. Hate messages are most expected, I am so incredibly angry with myself you have no idea, but I just had no time or motivation to write _anything_. *Sigh* I would like to thank – and you all should thank 'em too – DarkMagicianGirl 512 for one Hell of a motivational kick up the backside. Wouldn't have been an update were it not for your perseverance!

So yeah, here you go. Nice and long, too…

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"_We might as well be strangers in another town  
We might as well be living in another time  
We might as well be strangers,  
For all I know of you, now."_

_- Keane, 'We Might as Well Be Strangers'_

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**Chapte****r 4  
A Fine Line (Betwixt Life and Death)**

The ward was dark.

Dark and almost completely empty.

Yami's was the only occupied bed in the room, and the only light visible was permeating from a lonely desk lamp situated on the cabinet at his bedside. Outside, the rain was falling steadily, gently pattering against the bay windows behind their rather bleak cream curtains. Yugi had purposefully asked the young trainee nurse to leave the curtain nearest Yami's bed open.

He could see the rain better, this way. The thought of him and Yami being inside, out of the cold and wet after so long of being hammered by such a torrential downpour was enough to send waves of honest, _tremendous_ relief coursing through his veins. Having the curtain open was proof that they'd managed to get this far, proof that his mind _wasn't_ playing horrible tricks on him. Proof that Yami was safe, at last.

Though 'safe' wasn't really the most appropriate word to describe his closest friend's condition, in all honesty.

His eyes flickered back to the window just in time to watch a streak of lightning illuminate the skyline.

Yugi had been expecting it but still flinched at the site, before rubbing a lethargic hand over his face to compose himself. Not five hours ago, they'd been out in and amongst all that madness: soaked through to the skin, shivering with cold, and utterly terrified by the prospect that Yami wasn't going to make it to a hospital, let alone survive the night.

An incessant but reassuring beeping sound now filtered through to his thoughts and Yugi turned back to consider the prone figure lying quite still on the bed beside him.

"Told you we'd find you, didn't I?" he whispered, voice hoarse, cracking, as though he'd forgotten how to use it.

Unsurprisingly, his Dark did not answer him. Yugi wasn't fazed by this, though. He smiled softly and shook his head. "It's been so long, I'd almost given up hope. But the others didn't. You should know that. Grandpa and Joey and the gang never stopped believing in you. And even in my darkest hour, when my worst fears chased away my greatest hopes, they managed to talk me round."

His eyes twinkled with affection and he turned to stare balefully at the closed door. His friends were outside, still. All of them sprawled out on those horribly uncomfortable plastic chairs in the waiting room, desperate for a few hours' worth of shut-eye, if only to recover from the three and a half mile sprint to the Pier, earlier.

Yugi shook his head a little. If only the nurse had granted his friends permission to sleep in the ward, too. It wasn't as though they were struggling for space, the entire ward was empty apart from Yami. But, as expected, the trainee nurse had brushed away his request whilst simultaneously babbling about regulations and protocols. Yugi switched off after '-I couldn't possibly allow it, sir...' leaving the oblivious nurse to mumble away to herself in the background.

"I told them to go home and get some rest. They wouldn't listen to me," Yugi went on to Yami, unthinking. "I said you'd be having harsh words with them for putting your safety above theirs. Told them you'd be angry that they weren't looking after themselves because they were too busy worrying about you. Didn't convince them to leave, though."

Yami said nothing.

"Nope. They're all still here. Waiting for you. They want to talk to you, make sure you're okay, y'know?"

Nothing.

Yugi sighed heavily and tried to quell his overwhelming desire to weep, again. He'd cried more than enough over the course of the past few months. He had to be strong now, for Yami's sake. With a shaky sigh, he raked his eyes over his Dark's prone form, struggling to ignore the many tubes and wires connected to the frail body in the bed. He chose to overlook the chalk-white, sweaty pallor of Yami's skin, but couldn't easily forget the gasping, wheezing breaths Yami had been forcing out before the doctors had agreed to make things easier for him. But he mustn't think about those things, he _mustn't_. He fished around for a change of topic, moreso for his own benefit, than for Yami's.

"Grandpa wanted to come but he's not been so well lately, so he's going to wait till it's light when he's a bit more well-rested. It's been hard on him, having to run the shop all the time and take care of all the chores. You've just had me so ... so beside myself with worry that I couldn't function at all... feeling a bit bad about that now, to be honest with you," Yugi chuckled sadly. "I've been a real mess without you. Been a lot of hard work for Grandpa and the gang. They've got me through it though."

Yugi's eyes were blazing with fierce determination as he reached down and gently took Yami's limp, icy fingers within his own.

"And thanks to them, now I'm well enough to do the same for you," he murmured, resolute. "I'll help you get over this, Yami, I promise. You're going to be just fine. You just have to wake up."

His eyes roamed over the expressionless face eagerly, but not a flicker passed across his Dark's slackened features. Only the steady rise and fall of his chest and the regular beep of the heart monitor existed to demonstrate the life that still rested within Yami's awfully pale, malnourished and battered body. Without those, the Pharaoh could well have passed for one of the Dead.

Yugi refused to dwell on the thought for too long, though, preferring instead to let his head rest against a folded arm - his other hand still lightly gripping Yami's own – as he willed comforting tendrils of sleep to drag him under.

* * *

_Umm, I don't want to be the barer of even more bad news, you guys," __Tristan started tentatively, voice so soft it was almost a whisper, "but has anyone actually thought about how we're going to get him home?"_

_Yugi's heart sank. He turned back to Yami, eyes brimming with tears, lip trembling as he mentally noted each and every single visible injury. A broken arm, a fractured wrist, a couple of broken fingers, severely sprained - if not broken - ankles, icy and clammy skin pointing to either infection or hypothermia – Yugi couldn't tell which, - cuts and bruises and burns littering every inch of his battered body and ... and Yugi flinched as his mental list of issues steadily grew to also encompass the internal injuries that would make even the _slightest_ of movements a real _big_ problem. Yugi was no doctor, but the purplish bruising on Yami's chest suggested there were also a couple of cracked ribs to deal with. And if Yami wasn't moved with the greatest care, one could very well puncture a lung, if it hadn't already. Though Yugi was reluctant to contemplate that thought, too much. All in all, there were an awful lot of factors that made moving his fallen friend a massive issue. One wrong move, even the slightest bump to any one of his injuries could well be the difference between Yami living and dying..._

"_W-we ... we can't just leave him here!" he whispered, frantically. Tristan shrugged sympathetically, at a loss for what to do next. Joey and Téa exchanged nervous glances, both just as worried as Yugi and just as stumped as Tristan._

"_Well? Anyone?" Yugi demanded harshly when nobody spoke up, an irrational anger at the monsters who had harmed Yami overwhelming him. He didn't miss the joint flinch from all three of his friends, though all did shoot him apologetic glances afterwards. If anything, this just seemed to infuriate him further. Why were they all just _standing_ there? !_

_Joey spoke up after an awkward pause._

"_Maybe we should call for an –"_

"_No," Yugi rebuked firmly before Joey had even finished. "No, he doesn't like hospitals, Joey. Yami will never forgive me if I let them take him to one."_

"_But Yug-"_

"_I said _no_, Joey!" Yugi shouted, shaking his head, ignoring the wave of nausea it instilled within him. "I can't take him there, I _can't_! He ... He'll _hate_ me!"_

_Joey's own anger was brewing, very much aimed at the kidnappers. But with no such kidnapper in sight, Yugi would undoubtedly bear the brunt of his fury._

"_Yugi, just listen to me, alrigh'? How are you gonna treat his injuries at home, eh? How're you gonna fix up his broken bones and God knows what else they've done to 'im when he's in the bloody Game Shop? It jus' won' work!"_

_Yugi's anger seemed to wilt, slightly, his eyes watering as he locked them with Joey's._

"_We ... we can sort something out. Grandpa will know what to do," he pleaded, trying to convince himself as much as his best friend._

_But the blond man was just as stubborn as he was, and chose that moment to crouch down on Yami's other side, one hand resting on the Pharaoh's shoulder while he fixed Yugi with a pointed stare. His tone of voice levelled out as he tried to suppress the rage he was feeling for fear of setting Yugi's own anger off, again._

"_An' how are you gonna get him there without making things even worse? It's three bloody miles away, Yug." He saw Yugi's lip quivering and his expression softened, his voice following suit. " 'N you ain't in no fit state to carry him all that way in the rain, buddy."_

"_There h-has to be s-something in here," Yugi cried out, voice louder than it had been in a long, long while as anger and adrenaline sent him jumping to his feet._

_Yugi glanced around the warehouse, straining his eyes against the gloom, before sprinting into the darkness away from the circle of light currently blanketing his friends. His hands were outstretched in front of him, and he struggled to feel for a box or a crate or _anything_ that they could use in their favour._

_There was nothing. Not a single item lived inside this vast, desolate building. Nothing to use as a make-shift stretcher, nothing to wrap Yami up in to try and breathe a little warmth back into his body... absolutely _nothing_ on hand to help them. Yugi stumbled back over to his friends, shaking his head despairingly. He dropped heavily to his knees at Yami's side again._

_Téa__ cleared her throat nervously and knelt down beside him, resting a hand consolingly on his shoulder. He turned to look at her, expression one of utmost despair, and she felt her heart break for him._

"_I know you want nothing more than to take him home and make him safe, Yugi," she started, voice hitching, "but the best thing we could do for him now is to call for an ambulance. He needs to be in the hospital."_

_To her surprise, Yugi simply nodded, eyes downcast, the fight draining clean out of him._

"_I know," he murmured, voice so quiet Téa only just managed to catch it._

_Tristan was on the phone a second later, but the words he spoke were lost on Yugi, who wrapped a trembling hand around the Pharaoh's own lifeless one in comfort, refusing point blank to let any more tears fall._

"_Please don't hate me," he whispered, brokenly. "It's for your own good."_

_Predictably__, Yami didn't answer him.

* * *

_

Sunlight was filtering in through the pristine bay windows, catching dust particles as they flitted gently through the Sun's rays. Yugi watched them swirling around the room for a few minutes, the excited chattering of his three best friends lulling him into a soft sense of serenity; something he hadn't experienced for many months, now.

The TV was on, buzzing away in the background, and Yugi's eyes were drawn to a news story featuring the impressive and imposing headquarters of Kaiba Corps, with the owner of said impressive and imposing headquarters standing outside the entrance, giving a speech to gathered press and spectators. Yugi couldn't hear the article, or what Seto Kaiba was saying, but his friends were doing a great job of filling in the blanks.

"- brand new technology-"

"- only Kaiba could come up with a game mode that you gotta have surgically implanted to play it-"

"- gonna be awesome, not having to play with a duel disk, though! Just think of which card in your hand you want to play next and BAM! Up it pops! Straight outa your head in all its 3D Holographic glory!"

"They say you can play anywhere in the world, and at any time! No need for holographic projectors, or nothing like that! Just need your deck, and a component who has the chip implanted, as well!"

"-not going to be a little too dangerous? I mean, little children play duel monsters, too! This can't be good for them."

"Oh, don't worry, Téa. This is only available to over 16's. And under 18's have to have parental consent to go ahead with it. Younger kids will just have to stick to the traditional way of playing the games. Kaiba's company will keep developing the original duel disk system. This is just his way of ... well, showing off, I guess. Demonstrating to the masses just _who_ is in ultimate control of the gaming industry. It'll be for hardcore gamers, y'know. Like me and Yugi. Now, _Joey_, on the other hand ... well, just don't go trading in your duel disk for a chip anytime soon, will you, Joey?"

"_Hey_! Do I have to remind you of who came second at Duellist Kingdom? And Battle City? And who competed in the Championships? I don't recall _you_ taking part in any of those, Tristan!"

Yugi grinned despite himself, subtly shaking his head as he let his gaze return to the bed's occupant, once more. He couldn't wish for more wonderful friends, he was sure of that.

He was also sure he had Yami to thank for them being here, at all. His expression quickly sobered, a sad sigh escaping his lips.

Things were finally looking up, it seemed. The nurses had returned a few hours prior to disconnect the heart-monitor and the life-support machine, satisfied Yami's internal wounds were no longer life-threatening, and his heart was fully functional, allowing him to breathe on his own, once again. The broken bones had been treated and set, and Yugi was pleased to hear that the cracked ribs had _not, _in fact, punctured a lung and were now healing nicely on their own.

Though Yugi _did_ note – with considerable concern – their reluctance to transfer Yami to another ward, choosing instead to leave him in the otherwise-empty ICU. When Yugi questioned them on this, they said Yami had developed a mild case of pneumonia brought on by a chest infection, which had in turn been brought on by constant exposure to bitterly cold, and horribly wet weather. While the most severe of days were thankfully over and Yami's chances of recovery had increased tenfold, they were still preferring to play it safe, just in case.

"Yug? You okay?"

He looked up, suddenly aware of the fact that the room's few occupants had all fallen silent. And when had the TV been turned off? He hadn't seen anybody get up to do it...

"Maybe it's time you went home, Yugi," Téa said softly, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Go grab something to eat and get some sleep. We will stay here with the Pharaoh until you get back. And you can bring your Grandpa over, too," she added as a hopeful afterthought.

Yugi shook his head, blinking away the dizziness suddenly warping his senses.

"Can't," he said, hoarsely. "Not hungry. Can't sleep."

"You've been sat in this hospital for three days, Yug. You haven't left his side, not once! I'm sure the Pharaoh won't mind you going home, just for a little while. Even the nurses are starting to worry about you, now."

"They said it's okay for me to stay with him," he rasped out, fixing Téa with a pointed stare, pushing dirty blond locks out of tired eyes.

Téa frowned, hesitated, then effectively changed tactics.

"Do you really think the Pharaoh is going to be happy when he sees how much you've been neglecting yourself? You'll only make him feel worse for worrying you so badly." She squeezed his shoulder comfortingly. "I think he'd _want_ you to go home, sort yourself out and then come back when you're feeling better."

He blinked at her, a small smile lighting up his face.

"You're trying to say I smell, aren't you?" he asked, a sorely missed mischievous glint in his eyes.

Téa blushed slightly but kept her face as straight and as devoid of emotion as possible. "In the nicest possible way," she confessed, not missing a beat.

Joey snorted, but quickly covered it up with a very convincing hacking cough, even doubling over to further exaggerate the act.

Yugi's smile widened, and before he could stop himself, he was laughing. Laughing so hard his eyes watered and his ribs hurt. He was spluttering for air as hysterical mirth coursed through his entire being, leaving him weak and trembling at the knees. Had he been standing, the floor would have been beneath him by this point.

Roughly shaking his head as he wrestled to compose himself, wiping his eyes on his jacket sleeve with a hearty sigh, he finally nodded in agreement.

"Alright," he whispered, smiling softly. "But only because you asked so nicely," he added as he painfully noted the looks of immense relief washing over his three companions. He had no right to be mad with them. They only had his best interests at heart.

And Téa was right. Yami would murder him, if he were to awaken and see the state his young Aibou had managed to get himself into. Yugi's expression softened as he locked eyes with Téa who nodded back encouragingly, before struggling to his feet and stretching to release the aching knot between his shoulder blades.

"You will ring me if anything happens?" he asked, gently, gaze flickering onto Yami for a second before flying back to Téa. "If he wakes or ... or something else happens?"

Téa nodded firmly.

"The second it happens," she agreed, eyes blazing.

He stood, staring at the bed's occupant for a few moments, fidgeting absent-mindedly with the hem of his jacket sleeve.

"I'll come back with Grandpa in a few hours," he finally said, blinking back tears as he turned away from the bed. "Look after him."

"They will, Yug," Joey spoke up, rising to his feet and shrugging into his jade-green jacket with a slight grunt as his arm clicked.

Yugi turned to consider him, eyes lighting up hopefully.

"You ... you're coming with me?" he asked, barely able to contain the bolt of appreciation tugging at his heart-strings.

Joey nodded, beaming.

"Téa and Tristan can look after Yami, and in the meantime, I'm going to look after you. Someone's gotta make sure you wash behind your ears, and I don't trust Tristan to pay close enough attention, and ... well, Téa's a girl. And you don't want a girl in the bathroom with you while you're having a bath, do you?"

Téa and Tristan glared daggers at him. But Yugi couldn't suppress a chuckle of laughter. Joey smiled knowingly, grateful his joking around had had the desired effect. The worry lines around his best friend's eyes had softened, if only for a few precious moments.

"Can't say I'm all that keen on _you_ being in the bathroom with me while I'm having a bath, either," Yugi commented dryly. Joey just winked at him.

"Well, if ya _promise_ me you'll wash behind your ears, I'll agree to just waitin' in the living room for ya. There's a programme on TV in a bit I was hopin' to catch, anyway."

Yugi couldn't express with words the gratitude he felt towards Joey in that moment. An overwhelming sense of guilt also came with it, as Yugi realised just how much worry and stress he had caused his friends ever since Yami's disappearance. Yugi vowed in that moment to make it up to them, just as soon as the Pharaoh was home safe, once more.

He stepped up to Yami's bedside one more time, lightly squeezing his Dark's limp hand encouragingly. "I'll be back real soon, Yami," he said, ignoring the tiny tremor in his voice. "I promise."

And with a soft smile directed at Téa and Tristan – both of whom nodded back in encouragement – Yugi turned away from the group and hurried from the room, Joey hot on his heels.

The sooner he left, the sooner he'd be able to return.

* * *

For a few precious seconds, Yami was at peace.

There was a glorious warmth spreading through his entire being. Though he couldn't quite tell exactly where his hand was, he was pretty sure the warmth he was feeling was emanating from roughly around that area. If he focussed _really_ hard on that wonderful, wonderful feeling...

Yes! The lightest squeeze imaginable, but it was there, nonetheless. Yami's heart soared. He wasn't alone. Someone had come for him!

But then disjointed words fluttered around his head, whispers on the wind, as though coming from many miles away from where he was, even though the speaker could only be a metre away, at most.

'_-_ be back real soon, Yami. I promise.'

'_No! No, wait! Don't go!_' Yami thought, panicked. But that blessed warmth was already leaving his hand, and in doing so, started to leave the rest of his body, too. He shivered involuntarily, reaching out in search of it, desperate for its comforting embrace...

Or at least, he _would_ have reached out for it if his arms would obey him.

And almost as though someone had hit a power-switch, the pain was back; excruciating, agonizing waves off it coursing around his system. And it was cold. So, so cold he wished for nothing more than the beautiful heat he'd felt not a second ago.

Stricken, Yami wanted to call out to someone, _anyone_, to ask for help. He needed it to stop, he didn't care what it took, he just needed it to end. He needed the cold to leave and the pain to stop. But he couldn't work his vocal chords. His voice had deserted him.

In fact, now that he thought really hard about it, _everything_ had deserted him. He couldn't open his eyes, couldn't hear anything anymore, couldn't move a single muscle.

'_Is this death?_' he thought weakly, wanting so badly to just break down and cry, but he couldn't even force himself to do that. '_Or punishment?_'

'_Perhaps it is both._'

Yami jumped a mile – metaphorically speaking of course, considering his current predicament – heart racing far too quickly to be healthy as he considered the back of his eyelids with the most terrified of mental expressions.

But as understanding finally caught up with him, a strong surge of temporary relief engulfed him, leaving his mind reeling for a few moments.

'_You, again?_' he whispered to himself, frowning.

'_Quite possibly,_' the female voice in his head responded. Her voice was enticing, trickling into his mind like water. Yami was quite certain he should have been terrified of it. He knew deep down he really shouldn't be trusting it, and that more harm than good could possibly come out of having an imaginary voice inside his head... and yet, the voice provided company, and for the first time in many months, Yami didn't feel so unbearably alone.

'_I'm sure I'm losing it,_' Yami breathed, internal voice sounding tired and defeated, his mind feeling oddly detached from it all, somehow. '_For you can't _possibly_ be real._'

'_Now, here I was, thinking this was going to be the start of a beautiful friendship, Pharaoh._'

The Pharaoh snorted, forcing his eyes open despite their apparent reluctance. But he soon realised he needn't have bothered at all. There was nothing to see. Only darkness.

'_So ... so I'm _not_ dead ... right?_'

He just needed to be sure. Because he couldn't see a damn thing. Yet he was _so sure_ he'd heard something, _felt_ someone near him just a few moments ago. But there was, quite literally, _nothing_ in front of his eyes at all. So how was that possible?

'... _Not dead, no,_' the voice admitted, Yami noted somewhat reluctantly. There was a pause before she elaborated further. '_More like ... _nearly_ dead but not quite there, yet._'

Yami couldn't decide whether or not he was more terrified by the sincerity of her words, of more frustrated by the riddles she kept sugar-coating them with. Both emotions battled for dominance within his head, accomplishing very little aside from giving him the mother of all headaches to add to his list of ailments and afflictions. He scowled. Or at least, attempted the movements necessary to scowl without _really_ moving a muscle at all. He had the strangest feeling the disembodied voice in his head would get the idea, though.

He forced himself to calm his raging heartbeat and cleared his mind a little, in the hopes of making a little more sense out of the senseless situation he was trapped in.

'_Okay. Well, if I'm still alive, then, pray tell, how is it possible that I can hear you and sense you, but I can't see you? In fact, why can I not see anything at all?_'

The stranger considered his words for a few moments, then seemed to come to the most logical conclusion.

'_You are unconscious,' _she answered promptly,_ '– that is to say, your working body is not functional at this particular moment in time. And you and I are speaking on a much more ... _subconscious_ level, if you will. And to be perfectly honest with you, _I'm _not actually with you at all. Not in the hospital, at least. So even if you _were_ awake and we were conversing - as , indeed, we are now, are we not? – well, it would not be face to face._'

Yami's brain was really starting to ache. Nothing made sense. Not a single word the mysterious voice spoke to him could be digested with any reasonable form of comprehension for his battered, tired mind. He told her as such.

She merely laughed.

'_Pharaoh, perhaps it would be best to postpone this explanation until you are physically better prepared to understand it._'

Yami frowned deeply.

'_How do I know I can trust you? Hearing voices is not a good sign, no matter the lifetime I live in. And what if I never recover at all? What if I'm stuck like this forever?_' The thought horrified Yami a lot more than he was willing to admit to the stranger, yet she seemed to understand his worries regardless. Maybe she really _could_ read his thoughts...

Well, duh. She was inside his head, Yami realised. It was so obvious! But the pain and the anxiety was making his mind fuzzy, and communicating with the stranger was splitting his awareness even further. All Yami wanted to do was to succumb to the blackness floating just out of reach... but he had to hear, first ... he had to know...

'_You do not know whether or not you can trust me. I cannot provide proof to support either notion. For now, you must do what you will – I am merely offering company until you recover mentally from your ordeal. Consider me a ... a friend, I guess. Since we are both in this together now, no matter what you believe my intentions to be._'

The darkness was inching closer, but Yami forced it back, eager to hear more. When the voice didn't appear to want to continue, he prompted her gently.

'_And?_'

'_And as for whether or not you will recover... only time will tell. I don't have the answers, believe it or not. And I'm not in a position to find them out for you, considering you are a vast number of miles away from me at this particular moment in time. Rest assured, if you _are _stuck in limbo forever, I'll be stuck there right along with you._'

Not even remotely relieved, Yami sighed heavily and nodded in acceptance, relinquishing his hold against unconsciousness and falling subserviently into its grasp.

* * *

Somewhere, a vast number of miles away, a young, pale lady opened a pair of tired, emerald eyes and rubbed a hand over her face in weariness. She eyed the bedroom door anxiously, suddenly very reluctant to leave the comfort of her safe haven.

But the report had to be provided.

Her father was counting on her.

She shrugged into her dressing-gown and - with only a few seconds' worth of hesitation - swept silently from the room.

* * *

"_Mr Mutou? I must ask you to leave, and quick__ly now."_

"_B-but ... but what's wrong? I want to stay, I can't leave him! I promised I wouldn't!"_

_A pretty young nurse with long brown hair tied in a delicate ponytail at the nape of her neck wrapped a consoling arm around Yugi's shoulder and nudged him urgently towards the doorway. "Your brother will be fine, dear. Just let the doctors do their jobs. Please, if you could just wait outside with your friends, we will let you back in when everything is okay."_

_Yugi's eyes widened in terror, his heart skipping a beat as an uncomfortable silence fell between the two of them._

"_You mean ... it's not okay now?" he croaked out, trembling from head to foot._

_Not that he'd thought for a minute that everything _had_, in fact, been okay at all, but hearing the nurse say it made the whole situation seem all too real._

_The nurse seemed to regret her choice of words and swallowed hard, glancing towards her colleagues in search of additional support. A second nurse hurried over, offering the same bland, pointless words of little comfort in a pained and disbelieving manner all too reminiscent of doctors breaking terrible news to grieving relatives. Yugi was far from reassured, desperate to return to his Dark's side no matter what the consequences, but together – with a hand on each shoulder securing him firmly in his stride, allowing no chance for him to turn back– the two agitated nurses guided him hurriedly down the length of the ward._

"_Everything will be fine, Mr Mutou. Our doctors are quite possibly the finest in the country. He's in good hands."_

_Yugi's eyes watered as he was ushered outside, trying to ignore the way the doctors immediately swarmed around his Dark's prone form, apparently worried the boy's condition had deteriorated massively in the few minutes they had been out of the room. The door swung shut ominously, and Yugi suppressed a sob of distress as the two nurses bolted back to his friend's bedside, immediately joining the fray of activity. Yugi could only stare on, dumbstruck, horrified, as tubes and machines were connected and doctors and nurses rushed around the room like possessed animals, hissing and barking orders at each other._

_The wall had provided very little support as Yugi's legs gave out, sending him crashing to the floor. Joey, Téa and Tristan were at his side in an instant, wrapping comforting arms around his shoulders. Nobody spoke. No words of false hope and disbelieving reassurance were uttered. Because his friends knew him far too well to force such hated sentiments upon him._

_Not a word was spoken as Yugi curled in on himself, and cried.

* * *

_

"Yugi! You okay, pal?"

Yugi jumped, and opened his eyes, leaning quickly back from the window and staring nervously at his back-seat companion. His eyes were itching so much he spent a good half a minute rubbing at them in irritation before taking a moment to consider his friend's question. Joey watched him, worriedly.

After a moment's silence, Yugi nodded affirmatively.

"Yeah, I guess," he sighed softly, knowing Joey wouldn't buy it for one second, but grateful the blond didn't push the subject. "Just ... just thinking about stuff, y'know," he added. If he couldn't avoid it, might as well get it over and done with.

Joey nodded in understanding.

"I know, bud. It's been a horrible few months and an even worse few days. But the doctors said he's on the mend, now. So that's good news at last, ain't it?"

Yugi nodded begrudgingly before turning his attention to the buildings flying past them. He watched as the people outside shopped and socialised and played duel monsters to avid audiences ... he felt ill. It all seemed so ... so surreal. So _wrong_, almost. Yugi couldn't get his head around the fact that all these people, these _strangers_, could just go about their daily lives as though nothing had happened.

Though, he supposed, nothing _had_ happened, to them at least.

It was only Yugi's world – and those of his friends and Grandpa, too – that had been effected by Yami's disappearance. Nobody else had even noticed.

"Joey?" Yugi asked softly, after a few minutes.

"S'up, bud?"

"Yami _is_ going to be alright, isn't he?" Yugi cursed himself for sounding so weak and hopeless. But in that moment, despite being reasonably rested and clean and (reluctantly) fed, 'weak and hopeless' was exactly how he was feeling.

Joey fixed Yugi with a determined stare and squeezed his arm comfortingly.

"'Course he is. You just gotta keep believin' in him. He's gonna pull through jus' fine, you just watch and see."

Yugi wished he shared even half of Joey's optimism.

With a small nod, he returned to staring out the window, and silently wished the cab-driver would put his foot down.

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

_**To Be Continued …**_

**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

**Confused, yet? I know I am. Well, no, I'm not actually. When I said inspiration hit me, I wasn't joking. I now have a whole **_**new **_**direction for what was originally just an excuse to severely abuse some of my favourite characters. Think I need to get my head checked out...**

**AnyWho. Cheers for reading! Stay tuned...**

**Blessed Be!  
xXx MissHaun†ed-MoonLigh† xXx**


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